offshore drilling

August 28, 2017 -
Though their states' governors and coastal communities oppose offshore oil and gas development, U.S. Reps. Jeff Duncan of South Carolina and David Rouzer of North Carolina are co-sponsoring a bill that would make it easier for companies to conduct seismic tests for offshore deposits by weakening marine life protections.

August 17, 2017 -
Virginia Gov. Terry McAuliffe (D) has joined with the other governors of Southeastern states targeted for offshore oil and gas development and said he opposes those plans — a critical move since federal law gives special consideration to a governor's position.

July 21, 2017 -
When Gov. Roy Cooper of North Carolina announced this week that his administration would submit formal comments against offshore seismic testing for oil and gas, Terry McAuliffe of Virginia became the last governor along the Southeast coast who's continuing to press for offshore drilling.

June 29, 2017 -
President Trump wants to open an area from Delaware to Florida to seismic airgun blasting for offshore oil and gas reserves, a plan that carries risks for coastal communities while benefiting mostly foreign firms. Federal officials are accepting public comments on the proposal through July 6.

May 2, 2017 -
The Trump administration is reviewing President Obama's five-year plan that closed the Atlantic and other waters to offshore drilling through 2022. The GOP says Atlantic drilling would create hundreds of thousands of jobs, but it's basing the claims on an industry-funded report that's been debunked for omitting crucial data.

April 14, 2017 -
The Trump administration unveiled plans to expand offshore drilling at last week's conference of the National Ocean Industries Association. Launched by Exxon in the 1970s to represent the offshore drilling industry, NOIA has been investing in politicians from Southeastern states where its members would like to do business.

January 10, 2017 -
Last week the Obama administration denied all pending permits to conduct seismic testing for oil and gas reserves in the Atlantic Ocean, but pro-drilling politicians who don't represent directly affected coastal communities say they'll work to reverse the decision under Trump.

December 20, 2016 -
The president's long-anticipated announcement of a permanent ban on offshore oil and gas drilling in the Atlantic extends protections only as far as the Maryland-Virginia border. But environmental advocates say they will continue to fight against drilling anywhere along the Atlantic Coast.

December 16, 2016 -
Opponents of opening the Atlantic coast to oil and gas drilling are pressing President Obama to enact a permanent ban. We look at the legal framework for such an action, and how durable it would be under a Trump administration.

November 3, 2016 -
The Consumer Energy Alliance, a group run by energy lobbyists and tied to North Carolina Gov. Pat McCrory's push for drilling in Atlantic waters, submitted letters to federal officials in support of a proposed gas pipeline project that were signed by people without their permission.